Apar Gupta

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Apar Gupta
Alma materAmity Law School, Columbia Law School
OccupationLawyer, Writer
AwardsAshoka Fellowship

Apar Gupta is a lawyer, founder and writer on democracy and technology from India.[1] In 2019 he was elected as an Ashoka Fellow for, "creating a model for digital rights advocacy in the country that is driven by the public, for the public," as the co-founder of the Internet Freedom Foundation.[2]

Education[edit | edit source]

Gupta was born and raised in New Delhi, India. He attended Mount St Mary's School, obtained his B.A. (LLB) (Hons) degree from Amity Law School, and a postgraduate degree from the Columbia University School of Law.[3]

Law Practice[edit | edit source]

Gupta started out as a commercial litigator at Karanjawala & Co., and later merged his own firm Accendo Law Partners with Advani & Co. in 2010.[4] He was included in the Forbes India 30 under 30 list in 2014.[5]

Gupta resigned in 2015 to start his own law chamber[6] where he represented parties in notable civil liberties and constitutional cases that have digital or technology issues including Shreya Singhal v. Union of India (Section 66A),[7] Subramanium Swamy v. Union of India (criminal defamation),[8] Gaurav Sureshbhai Vyas v. State of Gujarat (Internet Shutdowns),[9] Justice Puttaswamy v. Union of India (Right to Privacy[10] and Aadhaar[11]), PUCL v. Union of India (Surveillance Reforms),[12] Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India (Internet Shutdowns),[13] Indian Kanoon v. Karthik Theodore (Right to be Forgotten)[14][15] and X Corp. v. Union of India (Sahyog Censorship Portal).[16]

He has represented the India Chapter of Friday's for Future when their website was blocked under terrorism charges.[17] His representations for journalists include Paranjoy Guha Thakurta[18] and Sucheta Dalal[19] against large corporations in cases of defamation. In April 2026, he was a counsel in a case in which the Delhi High Court directed the restoration of a political satirist's suspended social media account.[20]

Digital Rights Advocacy[edit | edit source]

He is a co-founder of the SaveTheInternet.in campaign on net neutrality[21] and SaveOurPrivacy.in campaign for data protection and surveillance reforms.[22] After his work on the Section 66A case,[23] he co-authored a study to document compliance with the judgement to discover ongoing cases which continued unconstitutionally against the Supreme Court judgement. This was called, "shocking" by the Supreme Court.[24] Gupta is the co-founder of the Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) and was appointed its first executive director from 2018[25] till November, 2023.[26] He resumed the role of IFF's Founder Director in November, 2024.[27] For his work at IFF he was awarded the Ashoka Fellowship in 2019[28] and the Next Now Fellowship.[29] Gupta also filed a case as a petitioner against the Ministry of Home Affairs for disclosure of statistical data on surveillance in India.[30] He has deposed before a parliamentary committee on the DNA Bill[31] and before a commission inquiring into the use of Pegasus.[32] On May 31, 2023, he presented Item #7 at the Annual meeting of shareholders of META Platforms[33] titled as, "Shareholder Proposal Regarding Report on Allegations of Political Entanglement and Content Management Biases in India"[34] that was defeated with 5% votes in its favour.[35] He frequently works on areas of personal autonomy and rights and has advocated against directive on the mandatory installation of the Sanchar Saathi App[36] and the Broadcasting Bill, 2024[37] which were rolled back by the Government of India.

Writing and Lectures[edit | edit source]

Gupta authored the Commentary on the Information Technology Act which is published by LexisNexis.[38] He writes regularly on digital and democratic rights in leading newspapers and is quoted as an expert in India.[39] Gupta is published in reviewed journals like the Indian Journal of Law and Technology, Seminar and the India International Center Quarterly.[40] He has delivered the 11th Krishna Raj Memorial Lecture[41] at the 37th Annual Dr. Ramanatham Memorial Meeting (with Jinee Lokaneeta) and also started a YouTube channel, 1984 to take forward the discourse on digital policy.[42]

Awards and recognition[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ "Rhodes scholar to Carnatic singer, meet 4 young lawyers in privacy fight". The Indian Express. 7 August 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  2. ↑ "Apar Gupta | Ashoka | Everyone a Changemaker". www.ashoka.org. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  3. ↑ "India's Justice League: Young Guns Behind The Right to Privacy Win". thequint.com. The Quint. 24 August 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  4. ↑ Chauhan, Neha. "Bombay's Advani & Co merges with Delhi start-up Accendo, aims for multiple best friends". www.legallyindia.com. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  5. ↑ "Forbes India – Apar Gupta: Emerging Voice In Media Laws". Forbes India. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  6. ↑ Saluja, Pallavi (10 March 2015). "Advani & Co Partner, Forbes India's 30 under 30 Apar Gupta resigns to go independent". Bar and Bench – Indian Legal news. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  7. ↑ Shrivastava, Prachi (30 March 2015). "Behind the scenes of the fight against Section 66A". mint. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  8. ↑ Shrivastava, Prachi. "5 lawyers, 10+ hacks file SC criminal defamation & journo rights challenge wider than Swamy's [READ ORDER]". www.legallyindia.com. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  9. ↑ Rautray, Samanwaya. "State, DM can ban mobile internet to maintain law: Supreme Court". The Economic Times. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  10. ↑ "Rhodes scholar to Carnatic singer, meet 4 young lawyers in privacy fight". The Indian Express. 7 August 2017. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  11. ↑ "Message from a verdict". The Indian Express. 28 September 2018. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  12. ↑ "Going Beyond Telephone tapping to Electronic Communication Surveillance: What are the safeguards for citizens? | PUCL". www.pucl.org. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  13. ↑ "Supreme Court Hears PIL on Restoration of 4G Internet in J&K". 9 April 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  14. ↑ "Top court to address right to be forgotten in judicial orders". Hindustan Times. 25 July 2024. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  15. ↑ Choudhury, Ritwik (6 February 2026). "Can persons discharged from criminal case seek deletion of past news reports? Supreme Court to examine". Bar and Bench - Indian Legal news. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  16. ↑ Pandey, Kamya (26 June 2025). "DigiPub to Join X's Lawsuit Against Sahyog Portal". MEDIANAMA. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  17. ↑ "Citing Anti-Terror Law, Delhi Police Block Global Youth Climate Activism Website". The Wire. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  18. ↑ "Paranjoy Guha Thakurta not liable to follow gag order on Adani reports till further order: Court". The Indian Express. 26 September 2025. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  19. ↑ "Sucheta Dalal Moves Court Against Ban on Reporting Sterling Biotech Fraud Case". dailypioneer.com. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  20. ↑ "Delhi HC orders restoration of two X accounts, permits temporary blocking of 'objectionable posts'". The Indian Express. 6 April 2026. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  21. ↑ Mishra, Ashish K. (9 May 2015). "India's Net neutrality crusaders". mint. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  22. ↑ "Citizens' draft law on data privacy to be unveiled today". The Indian Express. 8 June 2018. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  23. ↑ "Outside The Frame | Pragya Singh". 1 July 2014. Archived from the original on 1 July 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  24. ↑ ""Shocking": Supreme Court Notice To Centre On Cases Under Scrapped Law". NDTV.com. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
  25. ↑ "Looking towards the future". Internet Freedom Foundation. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  26. ↑ "Transitions and achieving our true potential". Internet Freedom Foundation. 18 July 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
  27. ↑ "Thank you Prateek!". Internet Freedom Foundation. 2 November 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
  28. ↑ Bench, Bar & (15 February 2020). "Apar Gupta wins Ashoka Fellowship for work with Internet Freedom Foundation". Bar and Bench – Indian Legal news. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  29. ↑ "Apar Gupta | Next Now". www.next-now.org. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  30. ↑ "Delhi HC seeks Centre's stand on statistical information on e-surveillance". Business Today. 5 April 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  31. ↑ "Rajya Sabha, Report on DNA Technology (Use And Application) Regulation Bill, 2019" (PDF).
  32. ↑ PTI (13 January 2022). "Those 'Directly Affected' By Pegasus Row To Soon Depose Before WB Govt-Formed Panel". outlookindia.com. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  33. ↑ www.sec.gov https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1326801/000121465923007846/z525230px14a6g.htm. Retrieved 10 June 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  34. ↑ "Meta recommends shareholders vote against proposal on rights impact in India". The Indian Express. 27 May 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  35. ↑ "Meta shareholders snub proposal to assess hate speech, political bias in India". The Morning Context. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  36. ↑ Reuters (18 April 2026). "India drops proposal to mandate national ID app Aadhaar on smartphones after pushback". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 20 April 2026. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  37. ↑ Gupta, Apar (27 November 2023). "Old censorship on a new medium". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  38. ↑ Bench, Bar & (23 August 2011). "Book Review Commentary on Information Technology Act by Apar Gupta 2nd Edition 2011 Lexis Nexis". Bar and Bench – Indian Legal news. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  39. ↑ "Author Page for Apar Gupta". muckrack.com. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  40. ↑ "Author Page for Apar Gupta :: SSRN". papers.ssrn.com. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  41. ↑ "11th Krishna Raj Memorial Lecture". ILS Law College. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  42. ↑ "How 'Digital India' Has Transformed the Landscape of Policing and Criminal Justice in Delhi". The Wire. Retrieved 10 June 2023.
  43. ↑ "Forbes India – Apar Gupta: Emerging Voice In Media Laws". Forbes India. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  44. ↑ Bench, Bar & (15 February 2020). "Apar Gupta wins Ashoka Fellowship for work with Internet Freedom Foundation". Bar and Bench – Indian Legal news. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  45. ↑ Bench, Bar & (21 December 2020). "Winners of second edition of Agami Prize declared". Bar and Bench – Indian Legal news. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  46. ↑ "Apar Gupta – Executive Director at Internet Freedom Foundation". Rest of World. 11 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  47. ↑ "IFF Wins the Global Privacy and Human Rights Award!". Internet Freedom Foundation. 25 February 2025. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  48. ↑ Hendrix, Ramsha Jahangir, Justin (20 January 2026). "Tech Policy Press Announces 2026 Fellows". Tech Policy Press. Retrieved 20 April 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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